Big Sydney: bid to boost number of migrants

THE former premier Bob Carr once declared Sydney was full, but now the O'Farrell government wants to swing the door wide open to skilled business migrants and international students.

The government hopes to attract thousands of ''high-value'' migrants and students to NSW as part of a strategy - to be launched today - to boost economic development.

The Deputy Premier and Minister for Trade and Investment, Andrew Stoner, said the government would simplify its sponsorship requirements for investors using 165 visas - for business people from overseas who are required to invest $750,000 to $1.5 million in Australia.

It would discuss with the Commonwealth the introduction of a new visa to make investing in NSW more attractive.

And it would ask the Commonwealth to reduce temporary residency rules, which require people to live in Australia for a set period. It also wants to make it easier for business migrants to extend their residency from four to eight years.

Under the strategy, the definition of investments would be extended to include Waratah Bonds and similar investments which the government hopes to use to help fund infrastructure in the state.

Mr Stoner said NSW would work with Victoria and the federal government to streamline visa processing and extend post-study work rights to international students to help them access a broader range of ''high-quality, low-risk'' education and training providers.

Reducing red tape for international students to access quality training would provide an incentive for oversees students to study in Australia, the plan said.

The NSW government will press the federal government for a greater share of state-government sponsored visas to raise its share from 11 per cent this year - 2640 people - to as high as 30 per cent.

This would increase the annual intake of skilled migrants in NSW from 1750 in 2010-11 to 7200.

Mr Stoner said he wanted to better align occupations with skills shortages identified by industry.

"To boost economic activity in NSW, we would like the state's allocation of state- and territory-sponsored skilled migrants increased to around 30 per cent, in line with our share of the economy and population," Mr Stoner said.

"Bob Carr said Sydney is full, but it's a city that has always been a magnet for people. We want the best and brightest from around the world to help fill skills shortages and turn our economy around.

''Regardless of the views Bob Carr held when he was NSW premier, we are keen to work co-operatively with the federal government, particularly [the] Immigration Minister, Chris Bowen, to improve the current arrangements.''

Mr Stoner said ''high-value'' migration had a critical role in improving the state's economy and migrants could provide skills needed in Sydney and regional NSW.

''NSW is already the preferred Australian destination for the majority of long-stay business migrants, skilled migrants and international students, but there's more we must do to realise the full economic and cultural benefits,'' he said.

''Investor migration is also an increasingly important area of focus for NSW but has only been used to attract relatively few migrants to the state in the past.

''Business migrants, in particular, bring with them experience, international connections, entrepreneurial skills and capital to establish new businesses.''

The Premier, Barry O'Farrell, has long been an advocate for a ''big Australia'' and has blamed poor planning by governments, not high immigration, for population pressures.

Before his election Mr O'Farrell rejected Mr Carr's declaration in 2000 that Sydney was full. He said immigration and population growth would boost economic growth and infrastructure development.

A spokesman for Mr O'Farrell yesterday said he stood by those comments, made in February last year.

The chief executive of the NSW Business Chamber, Stephen Cartwright, yesterday said he supported the government's push for more skilled migrants to boost the economy.

''NSW needs to become more active in making clear that the state welcomes skilled migrants, investor migrants and visitors undertaking international education,'' he said.